Icelandic WrestlingWe name this style of wrestling Icelandic because it had its origin inIceland, and has never been practiced, or even known, in other lands. Theperfection to which it has been brought in recent years has proved it to be, toa very high degree, an exercise which gives health and endurance to thebody, and is a real source of refreshment to the mind, while at the same timeit sharpens the courage, smartness and intellect of those who take part in it.Its benefits, to some extent. Were recognized in the olden days, when thedeceitful sword of the ancients had frequent use, and life and death were atstake. Many instances are on record, where weaponless men, on beingattacked with a sword, rendered that weapon entirely useless, by getting a“grip” on the hand that was raised to strike, in some cases even wresting thesword away from them. “Gripping” was also resorted to in the event of aman losing his sword. This kind of wrestling is preserved in Iceland as theaffectionate foster-child of the nation, having been practiced as far back as1100, when Iceland was a republic. It was not then limited to the platformnor to any special occasion, for throughout the land, from the country farmto the Althing (Parliament) it was a daily exercise in which most men took part. In those days a contest called “Baendaglima” was occasionally held.The wrestlers divided themselves into two opposing parties,. The weakestman on either side was sent out first, and the one who fell was reckoned

horsde combat

. A second man took his place, succeeded, if he fell, by a thirdand then a fourth, and so on, until the conquering man fell. One can wellimagine that these encounters were truly calculated to stimulate andencourage the younger generation to doughty deeds, to promote love andcomradeship between man and man, binding the nation together as a whole.When we read about combats between Icelanders of olden time andgiants, outlaws, Ethiopians (slaves belonging to the reigning kings) andwarriors of the heathen age, we see always a sure victory for wrestlers whenthey took part, even though their strength differed considerably from that of their formidable opponents. As a matter of fact, the essential idea of Icelandic wrestling is to enable the weaker man to hold his own with thestronger. Most of the “grips” are formed with the feet and legs, so thatthough one’s hands are tired, - a thing most common in days gone by, - a fairresistance might be made, no matter from what side the enemy attacked.Self-protection was the first thing which led to Icelandic wrestling, andtoday the motive is the same, though there is now much less need for it. In

the game there is only one lawful wrestling position (See Fig. 1), which hasbeen maintained as such since wrestling became a national sport, and if thisposition is kept, gymnastics, more than strength, must be used to perform thetricks lawfully.As the years rolled on the game became more and more popular, thechief schools in the land, at Holar, Skalholt, and Bessastaoir making aspecial feature of the art. At these places wrestling was practiced mostly incompetition, and, as some of the best wrestlers in the land were there, manynever-to-be-forgotten days were spent by them, the record of which ischerished by every true Icelander. Those heroes occasionally made toursabout the country exhibiting, which helped much to preserve the famousgame amongst the people sparsely scattered among the hill-sides and aroundthe coast of this bleak land. When the Grammar School was removed frmBessastaoir to Reykjavik the wrestling ardor appears to have becomesomewhat less among the students, as nothing is recorded in that regard fromthat time until recently. The country people, however, continued. In theMyvatn district in North Iceland, a daily wrestling match took place on theice of Myvatn (Midge water) during winter, when the fishermen cametogether to catch trout.Up to the present time this ancient pastime has been kept secret fromforeigners. Like the Japanese with their “Jiu Jitsu” we have kept it toourselves. That only occasion when strangers were allowed to witness itduring the whole of last century, was when it was displayed before KingChristian IX, of Denmark at Thingvellir when he visited Iceland in 1874,and even then only two men took part – the present Rev. SigurourGunnarsson of Stykkisholm and the Rev. Larus Halldorsson of Reykjavik.During recent years more stress has been laid on healthy exercises of all kinds. Clubs and young men’s societies have been formed throughout theland, and everything is being done to further the same amongst the risinggeneration. Some years ago a silver belt was offered to the best wrestler inIceland, to be contested for by amateurs, - there are no professionals as yetin Iceland. A silver shield has also been offered for the best wrestler inAkureyri (North), and one for the best in Reykjavik (South), with manyother smaller prizes.